Whirlpool system

ABSTRACT

A whirlpool system in which a plurality of Venturi-type jets are installed at various selected locations around a bathtub or other vessel wall. The jets are interconnected by airline and waterline tubing that is drastically sloped or arched to promote water drainage between uses. The tubing is co-extruded so that over the major portion of their path between jets, the airline tube and waterline tube are structurally joined so that the airline tube can help resist sagging of the waterline tube. In preferred embodiments, the airline tube is of smaller diameter and of a harder or higher durometer material or a malleable wire, preferably encased in plastic and co-extruded with the air and waterline tube, provides anti-sagging support of the tubes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to the field of whirlpool systems and more specifically to improved tubing for such systems wherein waterline and airline tubes are co-extruded so that the airline tube provides structural support to the waterline tube to avert tube sagging between jets installed on a tub wall. The smaller diameter airline tube can be of higher durometer to better meet its support function. Alternatively, the co-extruded tubes can be further supported by a jointly extruded plastic encased wire.

2. Background Art

One of the important issues facing the whirlpool bathtub manufacturer is proper drainage of the whirlpool to prevent water retention in the plumbing lines of the bathtub once the tub is drained. Typically, this is accomplished by sloping the jets approximately ¼″ per foot of pipe to allow gravity to drain the water from the plumbing lines. This approach tends to limit jet placement in the whirlpool bath. These so-called “self-draining” systems attempt to solve one issue (water retention) but accomplish this by sacrificing jet placement. Thus, “self-draining” systems compromise the hydrotherapy effects by requiring the jets to be located in places that accomplish little hydrotherapy to the bather. Walsh U.S. Pat. No. 6,052,844 shows a design for a whirlpool bath assembly that uses drastic angles of plumbing in order to accomplish gravity draining. The Walsh design does not lend itself very well to manufacturability since the discharge pipe from the pump must be constructed to drain to the furthest jet. The present invention solves this issue by sloping the drainage of the jets from one jet to the other at approximately 30 degrees and therefore the plumbing line is also arched accordingly. Therefore, jets drain one to the other regardless of installation location. Water simply cannot remain in a pipe sloped at such a drastic angle.

One aspect of the present invention is the design of the plumbing tubing. Currently, jetting systems for whirlpool bathtubs consist of an airline and a separate waterline. The present invention claims a design of a waterline and an airline co-extruded as one product. A different design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,240,166 to Altman that the uses of a single extrusion divided internally into two paths. The Altman design requires special fitting in order to construct to a bath. A further aspect of the present invention is a form-keeping method of co-extruding a malleable wire into the tubing extrusion. This wire prevents the tubing from falling or collapsing under the weight of the hot water passing through it because the tubing typically becomes softer under hot water conditions. The wire forms at the same angle to follow the contour of the tubes from jet to jet. One alternative to the wire is to extrude the two tubes in different durometers. The airline, having a smaller diameter, can be a harder durometer and still be workable for manufacturing. Since water typically does not flow through the airline, the durometer of the airline will remain high (harder) thereby providing the same result of holding the waterline in place and preventing it from sagging.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a whirlpool system in which a plurality of Venturi-type jets are installed at various selected locations around a bathtub or other vessel wall. The jets are interconnected by airline and waterline tubing that is drastically sloped or arched to promote water drainage between uses. The tubing is uniquely co-extruded so that over the major portion of their path between jets, the airline tube and waterline tube are structurally joined so that the airline tube can prevent sagging of the waterline tube. In preferred embodiments, the airline tube is of smaller diameter and of a harder or higher durometer material or a malleable wire, preferably encased in plastic, provides anti-sagging support of the tubes. The invention also contemplates equal diameter airline and waterline tubes as well as the use of other antisagging supports such as all plastic structures which may be coextruded with either or both of the airline and waterline tubes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The aforementioned objects and advantages of the present invention, as well as additional objects and advantages thereof, will be more fully understood herein after as a result of a detailed description of a preferred embodiment when taken in conjunction with the following drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional view of a tub being fitted with a whirlpool system in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 2-2 of FIG. 1, of the inventive tubing hereof, showing a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a jet body of FIG. 1, shown connected to co-extruded airline and waterline tubes of different durometer materials in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention; and

FIGS. 4 and 5 provide additional views of the jet body hereof shown without and with attached airline and waterline tubes, respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to the accompanying figures, it will be seen that a whirlpool system 10 comprises a tub 12 having a plurality of wall apertures 14 for receiving a plurality of Venturi jet heads 16 at spaced locations around the periphery of the tub. The various jet heads 16 are interconnected by a pair of semi-rigid tubes, namely by a waterline tube 18 and an airline tube 20. As shown in cross-section in FIG. 2, these two tubes are preferably of different diameters with the waterline tube 18 being larger in diameter than airline tube 20. A water pump 22 is provided at one external end of tub 12 to pump water under pressure through tubes 18 and the respective jet heads 16.

Each jet head 16 engages a corresponding aperture 14 along the exterior surface of the tub wall at an annular flat flange 24 and has an internal thread 29 for receiving a threaded nozzle assembly (not shown) from the interior of the tub 12 which secures the head to the tub. The head 16 also provides a pair of waterline connectors 25 and a pair of airline connectors 26 which are each preferably oriented at angles of about 30 degrees above the horizontal to accommodate the arching of the tubes 18 and 20 such as shown in FIG. 1. Such arcing promotes water drainage when pump 22 is “off”. The ends of connectors 25 and 26 are provided with respective inclined annular flanges 27 and 28, the bottoms of which extend out to form frictional engaging rings 32 and 34 to bear against the overlapping inner surfaces of the respective tubes 18 and 20. As shown in FIG. 3, a ring clamp 30 may be used, particularly on the waterline tube 18, to assure a secure connection.

A significant aspect of the present invention is designed to overcome the problem of a sagging in the arched waterline tube 18 under the weight of the pressurized water therein, especially in view of the softening effect of the hot water therein on the plastic material of which the waterline tube 18 is made. The present invention uniquely addresses this problem in two ways which may be employed alternatively or jointly. In either case, the tubes 18 and 20 are preferably co-extruded with only the ends separated to permit mating with the spaced-apart connectors 25 and 26. By co-extruding the tubes 18 and 20, the physical connection between the two tubes permits the airline tube 20 to lend structural support to the waterline tube 18. Moreover, because there is no hot water in tube 20, it will better retain its initial shape. Furthermore, the plastic or other material of tube 20 can be made of a material having a higher durometer because of its smaller diameter and yet still be relatively flexible for shaping into an arch. A harder plastic airline tube 20 would therefore provide even further structural support to the waterline tube 18.

Still another approach to adding a sagging prevention feature to the tubing of the invention is shown in FIG. 2. As seen therein, malleable wire 35, preferably surrounded along its radial surface by a plastic enclosure 36, is jointly extruded with the tubes 18 and 20. Wire 35 is preferably a 10 gauge solid wire to support an 18 to 24 inch length of co-extruded tubes 18 and 20. Wire 35, as used herein, may also be a rod of other materials including monolithic plastic, copper tubing and the like.

Having thus disclosed an improved whirlpool system tubing arrangement which promotes complete drainage, permits locating whirlpool jets where they can be most therapeutic, prevents waterline tube sagging and keeps manufacturing and installation costs at a reasonably low level, it will now be understood that the scope hereof is to be defined only by the appended claims and their equivalents. 

1. In a whirlpool system having a tub with a plurality of Venturi jet heads located at apertures in the wall of the tub and a water pump propelling water through the heads and into the tub interior, and a plurality of waterline and airline tubes serially interconnecting the heads; the improvement comprising: said tubes being arched between said heads to promote water drainage therefrom when said pump is turned off; and said arched tubes being co-extruded along at least a portion of their respective lengths so that said airline tube is connected along its radial surface to the waterline tube along its radial surface, said airline tube thereby resisting the sagging of said waterline tube when said pump is operating.
 2. The improvement recited in claim 1 wherein the diameter of said airline tube is less than the diameter of said waterline tube.
 3. The improvement recited in claim 2 wherein said airline tube is made of a material that is harder than the material of which said waterline tube is made.
 4. The improvement recited in claim 1 further comprising a structural supporting wire running parallel to and in contact with said waterline tube for resisting the sagging of said waterline tube.
 5. The improvement recited in claim 4 wherein said wire is surrounded along its radial surface by a plastic material.
 6. The improvement recited in claim 4 wherein said wire is jointly extruded with said waterline tube.
 7. The improvement recited in claim 4 wherein said wire is jointly extruded with both said waterline tube and said airline tube.
 8. A method of promoting water drainage from a whirlpool system between uses, the method comprising the steps of: a) interconnecting whirlpool system jet heads with arched water and air tubes; and b) co-extruding said water and air tubes to permit the air tubes to resist sagging of the water tubes during operation.
 9. The method recited in claim 8 further comprising the step of using an air tube material that is harder than the water tube material.
 10. The method recited in claim 8 further comprising the step of jointly extruding a support wire with said co-extruded water and air tubes. 